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Marsai Martin of 'Black-ish' Is Executive Producing and Starring in New Comedy

ByBianca Gracie

Jan 25, 2018

Image via Christopher Polk/Getty Images for Turner Image

The stars of Black-ish are glowing up right before our eyes. Marsai Martin, who plays Diane Johnson on the hit ABC sitcom, is branching out on her own to star in Little.

What makes the news even cooler is that the upcoming movie (which is backed by Universal) will also be executive produced by the 13-year-old, Variety reports. The deal marks a huge step in the actress' career, as it will be her feature film debut. She even thought of the script herself. The story of Little follows a woman who gets the chance to relive the carefree life she had as a girl (who will be played by Martin) after the pressures of adulthood get a little too overwhelming. The actress even got support from Get Out creator Jordan Peele, who excitedly tweeted "Go! Go! Go! Go!" upon hearing the movie news.

Girls Trip writer Tracy Oliver initially penned the original draft of the script, which was based on Martin's idea. Tina Gordon (Drumline, Peeples) later wrote the most recent version and is also set to direct the film. Will Packer and James Lopez, who produced Girls Trip, serve as producers along with Black-ish creator Kenya Barris. Girls Trip star Regina Hall and Josh Martin will executive produce with Martin.

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The rising actress has been one of the staple characters of Black-ish since its premiere in 2014. The award-winning show is currently on its fourth season. Martin is the latest star to embark on her own journey aside from Black-ish. Her co-star Yara Shahidi landed a spinoff titled Grown-ish, which recently got renewed for a second season on Freeform just two weeks after its premiere.